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"1169 And Counting is a wealth of information on our Republican past and present , and demonstrates how the Irish political landscape , like that of any nation, will never be a black and white issue..."

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Friday, September 17, 2004

'TAN WAR' REPUBLICAN NEWSPAPER - 'An tOglach' , 1918-1921.......

....... Ernest Blythe , one-time Editor of 'An tOglach' , the Irish Republican newspaper , accepted the 1921 Treaty of Surrender ; in his new position within the Free State Cabinet he cut the old-age pension by one shilling and discussed , with his Free State Cabinet colleagues , which IRA prisoners should be executed next .......

At one such Free State Cabinet meeting it was agreed that IRA leaders Rory O'Connor , Liam Mellows , Richard Barrett and Joe McKelvey should be executed immediately ; at 3.30 AM on the morning of the 8th of December 1922 , the four men were told that they were to be placed in front of a Free State firing squad in a few hours time - no trial , no jury .

Indeed , in one month alone - January 1923 - 34 IRA members were executed by Free State firing squads in nine different towns in the new Free State . However - one of the Free State Cabinet Ministers that had condemned to death the four IRA men named above , Kevin O'Higgins , was only a couple of months in his new position as Free State 'Minister for Home Affairs' - effectively the 'hard man' of the new Administration .

But ordering the death of those four IRA prisoners gave O'Higgins a troubled mind ; and with good reason .......

(MORE LATER).

WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :

war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21.

By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.

RAIDS.......

".......one of our supporters , Sean , lived off the beaten track , and was not accustomed to having his house raided ......."

" Sean was past middle age - stout , humorous and excitable . On this particular day he worked in a field at a good distance from his house and uphill from it ; his neighbour , a young man , came running downhill to him . " Sean , " he said , " have you anything in the house ? If you have , tell me , quickly , and I'll dump it . The Tans are coming ! "

" Oh ! H'anam an diol , na bitcheanna , " shouted Sean , as a prelude to a quick mental survey of all the rooms in his house . " No ! No ! No ! " he added . Then , an inspiration struck him : " H'anam an diol ! The picture of Archbishop Mannix ! Put out Mannix ! Put him out ! For the Tans hate him ...." Then , to ensure beyond a doubt the safety of the picture , he said - "....but put him under a stone , carefully ! "

The neighbour , trying to hide his laughter , was already speeding down the hill .

The British Secret Intelligence Service , under Maurice Oldfield , its de facto chief , began preparing briefings on Ireland in the autumn of 1969 using two Officers sent from London to set up an intelligence network aimed at keeping " a watching brief " . By early 1970 , Maurice Oldfield had set up an MI6 station on the first floor of the Conway House Hotel at Dunmurray , Belfast : with secure , independent communications links to Secret Service HQ at Century House , London , the station became co-ordinating centre for MI6 Offices at Lisburn Army HQ and Stormont , where British Secret Service men served as ' political Officers ."

Ironically , it was Harold Wilson , who , according to Maurice Oldfield , would cross the street rather than speak to him, who sent MI6 into Northern Ireland (sic) , reportedly because he distrusted MI5 even more - with good reason as recent revelations by ex-MI5 man Peter Wright in Australia have shown .......

Thursday, September 16, 2004

'TAN WAR' REPUBLICAN NEWSPAPER - 'An tOglach' , 1918-1921.......

.......Ernest Blythe TD , and Minister for Trade and Commerce in the First (All-Ireland) Dail Eireann , was Editor of the 'An tOglach' Irish Republican newspaper for a period in 1919 ; he probably regretted it later on , after he 'jumped-ship'.......

In 1933 , Ernest Blythe was the Editor of the (right-wing) 'Cumann na nGaedheal' party newspaper , which they called 'The United Irishman' (!) - this group was also known as 'the Blueshirts' , due to a coloured shirt their members wore in solidarity with the shirted fascist movements on the continent . Or you could believe the explanation given by the Blueshirts themselves for their dress-code -

- they claimed that they wore a blue shirt to prevent members from hitting each other should a fight break-out at a meeting they were at ! ('1169...' comment : colour- blindness must not have been 'invented' at the time .......!) But Ernest Blythe had 'changed sides' : he accepted the 1921 Treaty of Surrender and , by the following year , was to be found sitting at a Free State Cabinet table with , amongst others , William Cosgrave and Kevin O'Higgins , discussing which Irish Republican prisoners were next for execution .

Incidentally , it was at one such Free State Cabinet meeting that Ernest Blythe made a decision which was to haunt him for the rest of his political life - he cut one shilling from the old-age pension.......

(MORE LATER).

WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :

war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21.

By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.

RAIDS.......

".......the Irish were proud to display pictures of executed hero's , and almost every house had them - this , of course , was a great help to the British , as they immediately knew which side of the fence you were on , depending on the pictures hanging on the walls of your house ....... "

" Later on , as the resurgent spirit increased , the pictures of other patriotic Irish men and women were added ; among them was that of Most Rev. Dr. Mannix , Archbishop of Melbourne . When a British raiding party entered a house , the sight of a picture of Irish patriots did not tend to improve their goodwill towards its occupants ; very often the picture was torn down and trampled upon . This , in turn, did not help to soften the feelings of the householders for the British raiders .

As the Freedom struggle was intensified , most of the people removed their pictures to a place of safety - they would only be broken by the enemy , and their display would only incite the British to further effort and research which might perhaps reveal an arms dump in the vicinity or , worse still, a wanted man .

Our friend Sean lived on his farm off the beaten track between Kilnamartyra and Ballingeary ; it was not often , therefore, that the enemy paid him a visit . The year was 1920 , and most people had got accustomed to raids and searches . But not Sean ....... "

Nominally , 'Sir' John Rennie was in charge of MI6 ; he had been given the post in 1968 by the British Labour Government to keep Oldfield , bitterly disliked by both George Brown and Michael Stewart , out of the job after 'Sir' Dick White retired . Rennie , a 'black propagandist' with the misleadingly named ' Information Research Department' , had little knowledge of the bizarre world which Maurice Oldfield controlled .

Like many others who crossed the little fat man with the florid face and mincing step , Rennie met his 'Waterloo' quite quickly , falling victim to character assassination less than three years after his appointment , when his son and daughter-in-law were arrested with a huge haul of heroin .

When Rennie was forced to resign , after news of the heroin bust had been 'leaked' to Fleet Street , along with details of his sensitive and secret job , Maurice Oldfield was his only possible successor .......

Wednesday, September 15, 2004

'TAN WAR' REPUBLICAN NEWSPAPER - 'An tOglach' , 1918-1921.......

.......when ' An tOglach' Editor , Piaras Beaslai was 'arrested' by the Brits in March 1919 , he was succeeded in that position by Ernest Blythe , a TD and Minister for Trade and Commerce in the First (All-Ireland) Dail (32-County Irish Parliament).......

Ernest Blythe had some experience in editing a newspaper - two years previously (ie in 1917) he assisted in re-organising ' The Southern Star' newspaper in Skibbereen , West Cork - that was in January 1917 , and Michael Collins ( still an Irish Rebel at the time) came in as a shareholder . Then , in February that year (1917) Ernest Blythe was appointed Editor of 'The Southern Star' .

In November 1916 , 'The Southern Star' newspaper had been suppressed by the British , as its "...increasingly nationalistic tone " did not meet with the approval of the 'authorities' . The real authorities , meanwhile , were left to read the other Skibbereen-based newspaper , ' The Skibbereen Eagle' , and IT did not " meet with their approval " ; so they raided the premises - again ! At the time , ' The Skibbereen Eagle' was being run by local solicitor and (British) MP for West Cork , Jasper Wolfe ; a Mr. Eldon Potter had founded the newspaper in 1907 , but it never quite 'clicked' with the nationalist population . Thus the 'visits' it received from the then real authorities , the IRA .

However - (mini-tangent , that ...!)- Ernest Blythe was to go on to have even more experience in the Editor's chair : this time from the 'opposite side of the house .....'

(MORE LATER).

WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :

war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21.

By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.

RAIDS.......

".......my uncle and Jerrick Sheehan were a few feet in front of us , leaning against a fence - they were not aware that myself and 'Mick the Soldier' were there ; we were all watching for enemy trucks , hoping to avoid them . Jerrick had taken his pint of stout with him ......."

" Suddenly , I saw something gleam in Mick's hand - it was Jerrick's pint of stout being carefully withdrawn from its resting place ; he brought it back safely , turned towards me and , bowing gravely , raised it to his lips . I saw it tilt slowly and thought of its previous owners care for its safe transport . I judged that a third of it had gone when it was again lowered . Then it was raised and lowered a few times until finally it was empty , and raised for my inspection !

Gently , it was replaced on the flat stone and the 'operation' was complete ; although taking no active part in the 'operation' , I must get credit for not jeopardising it , for the struggle I had to make to smother laughter was indeed a hard one . We resumed our positions and waited , and soon we heard the noise of the departing British lorries . Then my uncle spoke - " They are going up Ard a' Bhona , Jerrick , I think we can adjourn . " " All right , Dan , wait 'till I get my pint . " A clink of glass on stone and then - " H'anam an Diol , Farmer , 'tis empty ! "

" You must have spilled it , Jerrick . " " No , no , I put it down on that stone there and there was not a drop spilled out of it . Someone must have drank it - it bate the devil . Or who could do that ? " A voice from the other side of the fence answered him : " Another ould soldier ! "

When British forces raided the homes of our people they naturally looked for some indication as to where the peoples' sympathies lay ; in many houses , prior to 1916 , a large picture of Robert Emmet hung on the wall on one side of the fireplace and was sometimes balanced , symmetrically , by a picture of Daniel O'Connell on the other side . A very poor balance it was , in my opinion . After 1916 , however , equilibrium was restored , for a picture of the executed leaders was substituted for that of the politician ....... "

Maurice Oldfield was a regular visitor to 'The Highwayman Lounge Bar' in Comber , County Down , and to Balloo House , a pub/restaurant several miles away at Killinchey , where his favourite drink was vodka and tomato juice , which he refused to call a 'Bloody Mary' . Maurice was still 'flashing' when two uniformed RUC men from 'Golf' Division walked into the toilets and arrested him , bringing an end not only to the career of the Ulster Security Co-ordinator (sic) but to an era in Irish history .

For 'Sir' Maurice Oldfield was not just a retired Secret Intelligence Service Chief (MI6) turned Mrs Thatcher's 'special crusader against the IRA ' , he was without doubt the most influential Briton in Ireland since 1971 . Oldfield's association with 'John Bull's other island' began in 1969 after British troops were put onto the streets by Harold Wilson . Oldfield was then Deputy Chief of MI6 in name , but in reality was the man who ran the spy service .......

Tuesday, September 14, 2004

'TAN WAR' REPUBLICAN NEWSPAPER - 'An tOglach' , 1918-1921.......

.......once again , this time in March 1919 , 'An tOglach' Editor Piaras Beaslai was 'arrested' by the Brits (under the 'DORA' legislation) ; but he did'nt stay locked-up in Dublin's Mountjoy Jail for long .......

In early April 1919 , eighteen Irish Republican POW's escaped from the 'Joy , one of whom was Piaras Beaslai but , unfortunately for him , this time freedom did'nt stay long - the Brits caught up with him on May 1st , 1919 but , this time , they sent him out of the country - back to Strangeways Prison in Manchester , England . However , again - he did'nt stay long !

The IRA organised a 'jailbreak' from Strangeways Prison on 20th October 1919 - six prisoners , including Piaras Beaslai and Austin Stack , were free again . Incidentally (another 'tangent...' !) , when Piaras Beaslai was 'arrested' by the Brits for the first time in 1919 (ie in March) , he was succeeded as Editor of 'An tOglach' by Ernest Blythe , TD (in the First Dail , 32-County body) for North Monaghan , and Minister for Trade and Commerce .

Blythe , a Northern Protestant , had some experience in editing a newspaper - with Michael Collins .......

(MORE LATER).

WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :

war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21.

By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.

RAIDS.......

".......two lorries of British Auxiliaries were on their way ; 'Mick the Soldier' and myself were knocking on doors , warning our friends and comrades to make themselves scarce . Dannie Sheehan's shop was open , and his wife was sitting by the fire ...... "

" Tadhg Buckley had just entered as we reached the shop doorway - " How are you Tadhg , " said Mrs. Sheehan . " I am the happiest man in the world , " said Tadhg , " until I hear the sound of a lorry ! " " Tadhg , " I spoke sharply , " get out now . "

He turned quickly and made a dash through the doorway ; just outside was a large polished limestone slab and Tadhg's heels , to use a local expressive saying , " went from under him " on the polished surface and he came down with a crash . ' Mick the Soldier ' found time for a burst of immoderate laughter , while poor Tadhg quickly regained his feet and , crossing the road, disappeared over the meadow fence .

We hastened along past Johnson's Forge until we reached the point where the fence of the Brewery Field joined that of the road at right angles . Here we left the road and slipped along by that fence on the side remote from the village . Reaching a certain point , we stopped to reconnoitre ; we heard a noise on the other side of the fence - my uncle and Jerrick Sheehan were just taking up a position with their backs to the fence , and to us : Jerrick spoke - " Do bheirim o'n diol , Dan , I brought my pint with me . Ould soldier , boy ! " he said in triumph .

A row of strong furze bushes grew along the top of the fence ; raising our heads cautiously , we were just in time to see Jerrick place his pint on a flat stone between two of the thick stems of the bushes then , turning his back on it , he leaned against the fence with my uncle . Both remained silent as they gazed towards the village , listening for sounds of enemy activity , not realising we were only feet away from them . Behind them we stood motionless , leaning slightly forward on the fence . My companion , 'Mick the Soldier' had his eyes firmly fixed on Jerrick's pint ......."

It was mid-afternoon , late March . A small , fat man with thick spectacles and darting eyes swayed back from the urinal in The Highwayman Lounge Bar , in Comber , County Down , nodding , smiling , flashing at each lone customer who arrived to relieve his bladder . His breathlessness was due as much to excitement as to his chain-smoking and asthma , for he was playing a game as dangerous as it was 'exciting' : Maurice Oldfield was engaged in what the homosexual fraternity call " cottaging " - and what police call " importuning " .

It was a game which he played regularly ; several times a week he would climb into his official car at Stormont Castle , where he had an apartment and office , and be driven four miles to The Culloden Hotel outside Hollywood and , having dismissed his driver/bodyguard , he would order a taxi to take him to Bangor , five miles away , from there he would pick up another cab to take him on one of his excursions into the Ards Peninsula or East Down .......

' Fittingly , the question - 'What is a Republican? ' fails to be answered in our memorial number for Austin Stack , a man who bore and dared and suffered , remaining through it all and at the worst , the captain of his own soul . What then was Austin Stack , Republican ? A great lover of his country . A man without a crooked twist in him . One who thought straight , acted straight , walked the straight road unflinchingly and expected of others that they should walk it with him , as simply as he did himself .

No man could say or write of him - " He had to do it ..." . That plea of the slave was not his . His duty , as conscience and love dictated , he did . The force of England , of the English Slave State , might try coercion , as they tried it many times : it made no difference . He went his way , suffered their will , and stood his ground doggedly , smiling now and again . His determination out-stood theirs , because it had a deeper foundation and a higher aim .

Compromise , submission , the slave marks , did not and could not exist for him as touching himself , or the Cause for which he worked and fought , lived and died . '

However , I digress ('tangents' again !)- the Editor of 'An tOglach' , Piaras Beaslai , was once again 'arrested' by the Brits , in March 1919(under the 'DORA' legislation) and locked-up in Mountjoy Jail in Dublin ; but he did'nt stay long .......

(MORE LATER).

WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :

war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21.

By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.

RAIDS.......

".......it was a harvest evening in 1920 - a dangerous time for us , as the British Auxiliaries went raiding and searching local villages ......."

" Myself and 'Mick the Soldier' had just finished our tea when the furious gallop of a horse sent us running out of doors ; my mother stood at the gate , and the three of us saw a rider on a heavy awkward horse down the steep hill from Caherdaha . Stones and sparks flew from under his thick hairy fetlocks - his hooves tore the road as he was pulled up . The rider was Jim Lehane of Coolierach , an IRA Volunteer , and he told us he was bringing the horse to the forge when two British Army lorries began to climb the long steep hill of Caherdaha behind him .

Jim had urged the horse to the utmost , first uphill , next for two hundred yards on the level , and finally downhill steeply for two hundred yards to our gate . He quickly told us the news and galloped off ; my mother went into the house while we went down to the Cross , to warn anyone who might be in Den's pub at the corner or in Dannie Sheehan's shop . We first looked into the bar - it was empty , and we ran out again and , as we passed along the front of the pub , I got a notion : running to the kitchen window , I seized the lower sash and, raising it , put in my head and shoulders . In the dim light I could see my uncle Dan and Jerrick Sheehan , an ex-British soldier , sitting at the fire . Two full pints stood near them ; Jerrick had been working with my uncle , and both had just come for a drink after the day's labour .

" Clear out the back , and through the Brewery field - now ! " They did not question my unceremonious order , but got busy - I noticed that while my uncle left his pint , Jerrick brought his swiftly but very carefully along . He did not catch the glass by the middle , but from above, with all his fingers around the top .

DEATH OF A BUTCHER .(No By-Line) First published in'IRIS' magazine , March 1983 , Number 5 , page 42.

Re-published here in six parts .
[6 of 6].

Immediately on his release in August 1982 , having served six years of a twelve-year sentence (with full remission), Lennie Murphy set about regaining control of the UVF and reforming a murder gang on the lines of the ' Shankill Butchers ' . Between August 1982 and his execution in November 1982 , Murphy was known to have been behind the killing of Brian Smith , a UVF dissident , on September 5th , 1982.

He was also involved in the brutal murder of a west-Belfast Catholic , Joseph Donegan , who was kidnapped on October 22nd 1982 . The killing of Donegan , however , was probably Lennie Murphy's last ; for , on November 16th , 1982 , the IRA caught up with him , and then , for him , as for his unfortunate victims - there was no escape .